Presently, there are numerous shields available which serve as protective coverings for a variety of items; including clothing, furniture and other easily soiled materials. One of the most common of such coverings is a bib, and more particularly, a bib of the type which is commonly used when feeding a child. Bibs such as these come with a variety of features in order to meet the various difficulties normally encountered when feeding a child, and also to satisfy the individual preferences of the parents.
Thus, one may easily find bibs which are disposable, or made out of plastic, which also may have a food catch to receive and collect fallen foods and liquids. The ways of attaching these bibs are almost equally as numerous, some use the well known tie strings while others use adhesive materials, such as velcro, and still others utilize elasticized neck bands. Furthermore, bibs come in a variety of shapes and sizes, and are frequently combined with related items such as pacifier attachments or bottle holders.
Nevertheless, with all of the consideration which has been given to children's bibs, one particular requirement has not been satisfactorily met. Namely, the need to attach the bib in such a way that there is no constriction about the child's neck, yet have an attachment which is sufficient to prevent liquids and food products from traveling down the child's neck, under the bib, and thereby staining the clothing thereunder.
Attempts to overcome this problem have taken myriad forms. Adhesive fasteners, series of interlocking catches, and even standard tie strings all see the solution to this problem in the need to be able to draw the attachment tightly about the child's neck. This approach however, fails in two respects. First, to be certain that one has prevented any space between the bib and the child's neck, the attachment must be uncomfortably tight for the child. Secondly, due to the general activity of children, many of these attachments loosen during use, which loosening is exacerbated when the child plays with or pulls on the shield portion of the bib.
Another approach to prevent food from moving down the child's neck, is to utilize an elastic neck band. Where such neck bands are not adjustable, it will be found that one size will be to tight for larger children and yet to large for smaller children. Even with an adjustable neck band, the need to draw the neck band tightly about the child's neck will be overly constricting and uncomfortable.
A more serious concern in this area is the ease of detaching the bib for safety purposes. Many parents avoid tie string bibs out of a fear that the child may somehow catch the bib on some typical household item and then fall; which if the bib does not release will likely to cause injury or even death. To avoid this, it is common to have a bib which will detach when an excess amount of pressure is applied to the bib. However, with use, attachments such as these, which initially remain secured during normal feeding, become weak or worn, in which case the child can readily remove the bib simply by pulling on it.
For these reasons, the bibs presently available do not sufficiently solve the problem of either restrictive or ineffective neck bands. It was to overcome these various problems that the subject invention was developed.